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Meeting In Review – Wednesday 9 April 2025 New
Date: 10-Apr-2025
Metropolitan midweek racing came to Ipswich where ten races were run and won.
With such a big program, strangely only two participants won multiple races.
Rob Heathcote trained a race-to-race double and his stable apprentice Bailey Wheeler rode two winners.
The young hoop piloted the Scott Morrisey-trained Lumens Lenny to victory over 1100m.
Despite getting caught wide in the run, the Capitalist gelding was able to overcome that bad luck thanks to the urging of Wheeler to salute by a neck.
Heathcote’s first win of the day was Wheeler’s second, when the pair combined with Deep Dawn in the Maiden Plate over 1666m.
The four-year-old mare had teased that she was going to win a race in four previous starts this preparation but just couldn’t get the job done.
That changed on Wednesday when Wheeler drove hard early from the outside barrier to lead.
With a three-length advantage entering the straight, the moment of truth came once again.
Thanks to an enterprising and well-timed ride by the talented apprentice, Deep Dawn fell in and finally broke the hoodoo at her 17th start.
It was a less stressful watch for Heathcote’s second winner, Express Payment.
The Rich Enuff gelding started as a $2.35 favourite in the Class 2 Handicap and ran to market expectations.
Jake Bayliss landed in a perfect spot in the second pair before his mount let down strongly to win the mile contest comfortably by 1.4 lengths.
Heathcote’s two wins took him to a clear second in this season’s Ipswich Trainers premiership behind Tony Gollan.
Speaking of Queensland’s leading trainer, Gollan, he registered his 21st win for the Ipswich season with Addition.
The Savabeel mare was first-up from a spell when she lined up in the Class 1 & Maiden Handicap over 1100m.
Most would have thought the sprint trip was too short for Addition, but jockey Ryan Maloney took advantage of a strong speed.
He settled in the second half of the field before letting the four-year-old sprint hard and fast in the straight to run down the leader and win by 1.3 lengths.
Ipswich trainer John Hubbard claimed the sole lead in the Local Trainers premiership when Twyford won the last race of the day, the 1200m Benchmark 70 Handicap.
The gelding is a track specialist with all five of his wins coming at the Bundamba circuit.
Twyford, who was an emergency in the field, looked to be struggling to keep up early in the race.
However, Adin Thompson was able to take inside runs before charging home along the fence to win narrowly.
Twyford paid $18 for the win and wasn’t the only big priced winner on the card.
The previously mentioned Deep Dawn paid $16 while the Chris Waller-trained Lovey Dovey defied Gollan pair Zou Big Boy and Dubias Miss to win at the princely odds of $21.
Early in the day two young horses stamped themselves as must follows going forward.
The Tony & Maddy Sears-trained Yuna Is Pierata had looked good at the trials and took that form to his debut race where he easily accounted for his rivals in the opening event by just over three lengths.
Noble Decree has taken some time to develop but David Vandyke now looks to have a handy galloper on his hands.
The three-year-old gelding returned to action in the Maiden Plate over 1200m and the race could not have panned out better for him.
He benefited from a great Noel Callow ride before finding the line well to win by three-quarters of a length.
Racing returns to Ipswich on the 21st of April for our Easter Monday meeting.
By Craig Sheppard
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